


Oh My God They Were Roommates

by H8ful_hoe



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Almost as slow burn as spn itself, Angst, Destiel - Freeform, Eventual Castiel/Dean Winchester, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Smut, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Modern AU, Multi, Original Character(s), Sorry Not Sorry, destiel au, roommate au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-18
Updated: 2018-12-19
Packaged: 2019-09-22 04:33:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,058
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17053226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/H8ful_hoe/pseuds/H8ful_hoe
Summary: Dean is left in a bad situation after his former girlfriend convinced him to move, then left him. Now he’s in search of a roommate and his brother has one in mind.





	1. Chapter 1

'I'm sorry, Dean'

Dean could hear the words spoken in her voice, so clearly as if Lisa were reading them to him. But she was long gone. She couldn't even offer Dean the courtesy of saying the words in person. Instead, the words were simply left on a note stuck to their fridge. Well, technically his fridge now. Lisa had left and Dean was alone. It didn't seem real.

"A fucking note." Dean laughed without an ounce of humor as he shredded the small square of paper. He let the little pieces fall to the kitchen tile floor, lacking the concern to dispose of the trash properly.

He was swarmed with so many emotions it felt as if he was going to drown. Anger was the main one. He had the right to be pissed. Quickly falling into his own pit of rage he paced the small kitchen, wanting to slam his fist against the wall. His girlfriend had just packed up and left without even saying anything. She left him with only a note. He didn't want to admit it but, somewhere, in the back of his mind he knew they wouldn't last long. 

He and Lisa had met in junior year of high school. They went on a single date before hooking up and their whirlwind of a 'relationship' started. Some of his best and worst memories were with Lisa Braeden. The first time Lisa had ended things she had told him, "they just weren't meant to be". Now he was learning that again.

Dean had dropped out later junior year to work full time for his dad and to take care of his little brother, Sam. Dean wasn't the smart one in the family, everyone knew Sam was the one destined for great things. And everyone was right. Sam got a scholarship at a fancy law school, while Dean stayed close to home and worked for his dad still. At some point he had gotten bored with his life, that's why he was so excited when he ran into Lisa again.

After that everything was a chaotic blur. Within two weeks she had convinced him to rent an apartment with her. It was more expensive then he would have liked, but at least they could live together, she had told him. By the third week he realized why they didn't last the first time. They had absolutely nothing in common. No real connection. Everything was an argument. She wanted to go to a fancy restaurant for dinner, he wanted to order a pizza. She wanted to watch 'Real Housewives', he wanted to watch 'Game Of Thrones'. Those were just the little things though. 

Lisa had money. Lots. She came from a rich family and had her own interior design business with A-list clients. Money leads to money. Dean, on the other hand was a blue-collar guy from a blue-collar family. His dad, John, owned a garage with his friend Bobby that he inherited from his father before him. His mom, Mary, was a housewife before she died in a house fire when Dean was 4. After his mom's death nothing was the same. 

They had different backgrounds, different tastes in, well, everything, and different lifestyles overall. Clearly Lisa had noticed this too. The night before she had a cocktail party to go to, and they'd gotten into a fight when Dean told her he didn't own a tux. She opted to go by herself after throwing a hissy fit. "It's probably better anyway, it's just not your setting." The brunette had told him before storming out.

So he decided to go to 'his setting'. A dive bar called "The Roadhouse" that he frequented as much as he could. It was a nice break where he could hang out with his friends. There was Ellen Harvelle, the bar owner and her daughter, Jo, a waitress. Along with that was Ash who, if Dean's being honest, has no idea what he does, but Ellen keeps him around. And Benny, a frequenter at the bar, who Dean had come to be friends with over the years, and a few others. He felt most at home in their company. Like he belonged there rather than stuck out like a sore thumb.

By the time he managed to stumble home, Lisa still wasn't back. There was no tv in their shared room so he crashed on the couch and passed out, watching some old cop show he didn't know the name of. There were way too many anyway. It was an ungodly hour when he was jolted awake by to sound of a slamming door. Lisa greeted with an unenthusiastic 'hello' before making quick pace to their room. Dean tried to follow but found the door locked. Dean sighed before he returned to the couch and drifted back to sleep.

In the morning she told him she didn't know if them being together was a good idea. After another argument Dean stormed off the work and told her they'd talk in a few hours. Clearly she couldn't wait that long.

Once Dean was back in reality he realized she had probably been planning this for a while. How else could she have gotten her stuff, and most of his stuff, out of the house in just a few hours? He decided to explore the apartment, see what all she had taken. Still reeling from his emotions he passed through the living taking note that she had at least left the tv and his broken recliner, but had taken the couch, table, and even the rug. He wasn't too upset about that one though. He always hated that hideous rug. The pattern was a hideous shade of green with brown splotches that he always thought looked like someone had spilled coffee. Once at the bedroom door he practically threw it off its hinges and froze. The bed, his bed, was gone. In its place was his old quilt that his mother had made before her death and a pillow. He scanned the room saw his dresser was still in place, with two of the drawers on the floor, empty. 

He didn't bother checking the bathroom, since he highly doubted she was able to take anything from there without a hell of a struggle. He hoped she wasn't that petty. He paused for a moment before going to check the bathroom. Thankfully everything had been left in its place. Last stop in the the small apartment was the spare bedroom, which Lisa made into an office. The room where she would lock herself away for hours was now entirely empty. 

Sighing in defeat Dean hung his head and shuffled to his recliner. He collapsed into the seat and buried his head in his hands. Even though things weren't always great, there was still a part of him that cared. Still a part of him that cared about her, even if he wasn't in love. The deafening silence seemed to go on forever as he sat in that chair thinking. Thinking about the catastrophe that was the life of Dean Winchester.


	2. Chapter 2

"I don't know what I'm gonna do, Sam." Dean sighed into the phone. "I'm a week late on rent. Of course she skipped out before it was due." Dean scoffed at the sour memory of his ex. Since she left he pushed it to the back of his mind and focused on work. It had been 2 weeks since she left and Dean, for lack of better wording, was surviving. He hated how quiet the apartment was at night. He missed having someone to wrap his arms around and say 'good morning' to. He'd never admit it, but he didn't like being alone at night. He was a cuddler. Maybe that's why before Lisa he was with a new woman every week. He didn't necessarily want a relationship with them. He just didn't want to be lonely.

"If you need I ca-"

"No Sammy. You're not paying my rent. I'm a grown ass man and you're my little brother." Dean used his 'big brother voice' as Sam called it. Sam had offered in the past, but like now, Dean turned him down. His combination of pride and guilt denied his brother's help.

Sam scoffed at how stubborn his brother was. It was nothing out of character for Dean. "I was going to say," Sam took a dramatic pause to see if Dean felt the need to interrupt him again. Dean rolled his eyes at how sassy his brother had become. "I have a friend whose brother is looking for a place."

"Which friend? If it's that guy Brady tell him no. I don't like him." 

"Seriously, dude? You met the guy once, for like 10 seconds. You're just mad because he said your car was an antique." Sam reminded.

"Baby is not just a car. And she's definitely not an antique." Dean sneered. "You can't expect me to like a guy that disrespects my Baby like that." Dean was always very defensive over his black '67 Chevy Impala. He got frequently judged for driving such an old car in 2018, but he didn't care. He loved that car and had practically grown up in it. After his mom died his dad took him and Sam traveling for a while with no real destination in mind. Eventually they found their way to California and settled down by the time Dean was 10. Sam was only 4 years younger than Dean, so Dean remembers more about those times than Sam. It was probably for the best. Dean had loved that car and on his 18th birthday his dad gave him the car, with strict instructions to take care of her. Dean didn't need to be told that though, he'd never let anything happen to his baby.

"Well, it's not Brady. My friend Gabriel's brother just moved out here and is kind of lost. Apparently he hasn't found a place he likes that's in his price range." Sam explained.

Dean mulled over the idea. He imagined a guy roommate would be way different than a girl roommate. Especially one that was so high maintenance. "Alright, I'll bite. What's this guy like? Or do you not even know anything like usual?" 

"Yeah, sorry, which one of us in in college?" Sam asked with a smirk in his voice. If it had come from anyone else Dean would have been offended, but Sammy meant no harm. He was too proud of Sam to ever be jealous.

Still, Dean retorted with his usual comeback. "Shut up, bitch,"

"Whatever, jerk." Sam replied,  it was instinct at this point. "Anyway, I've only talked to him twice but he's doing college classes online and he's also like a writer-in-training or something. I'm pretty sure Gabe said he moved out here to work with some editor or publisher or whatever."

"A writer, huh? And that's all you know?" Dean questioned. It wasn't a lot of information to go off of, especially for someone who might move in. "Do you at least have a name?"

"It's Castiel. Like I said, I've only met him twice, but he's nice. He's a little off but he seems like a good guy." Sam explained, sounding genine. Dean wasn't going to agree right away though. Not without meeting him at least.

Dean dragged a hand down the length of his face before nodding to himself. "Ok fine. I'll meet the guy. But that is not a yes. I wanna make sure he's not some weirdo before he starts moving his crap into my place."

"Always with the positive thinking, Dean." Dean could see Sam's eyes rolling without even seeing it. " Anyway, I'll give him the address, tell him you're considering it." 

"What? No man, I don't want him coming here. Not yet at least. Tell him to meet me at The Roadhouse." 

"Fine." Sam agreed. "I'll tell him to meet you there." Sam paused for a second, most likely setting up the meeting. "Alright man, I gotta go. My free period is almost over."

"Yeah, I know. It's nice talking to you, Sam." Dean paused for a minute then sighed. "I- I miss you, Sammy." Dean paused again. "So does dad." Sam and his father didn't have the best relationship. By the time Sam was old enough to talk he and John butt heads. When Sam went off to college it was an escape. To John it was a betrayal. After Sam had left he and Dean fell out of touch. But in the recent months they'd been working to get back to how things were before. Dean missed having his brother around and Sam felt the same. About Dean at least.

Sam scoffed. "Yeah, sure he does." It was quiet for a minute before Dean heard a bell in the distance from Sam's side of the phone. "Now I really gotta go."

"Alright Sam. Have fun doing whatever nerd stuff you do." Dean joked with a smile, wishing he had more time to talk to Sam.

"I gave Gabe the bar address and he gave it to Cas. He's gonna meet you there around 9."

"Roger that."

"And Dean? Be nice." Sam warned before hanging up. Dean moved his phone from his ear and looked down at it. The call time read '36:07'. A small, sad smile made an appearance on his face when he realized its the longest time he'd talked to his brother in almost 3 months. Dean was trying. Really trying to get back to normal with Sam. But after Sam had left he was forced to side with his father, getting the anger projected at him, but that wasn't anything new.  At least now he was old enough to hit back. 

"I'm always nice." Dean muttered before exchanging his phone for the remote and started channel surfing, leaning back in his recliner, trying to get comfortable. He had spent all his nights and most his days in that chair. He hadn't bothered getting a new bed or even a new couch. The lack of funerature crossed his mind when he thought about the possibility of a new roommate. Dean didn't financially have any other option. Working in a garage for his father wasn't exactly a booming business. Sighing again he leaned fully back in the chair and closed his eyes, mentally preparing for the meeting to come.

Before he knew it, Dean had dozed off. A dreamless slumber took over as he relaxed in the chair. It was the first time since Lisa left that Dean had actually been able to sleep. He got over her soon after she had left, having her gone made him realize he didn't really have feelings for her. Not deep feelings anyway, not feelings of love. As far as he was concerned he had never been in love and that's most likely how things would stay. It wasn't like he didn't want more, of course he did. It was a morbid thought but Dean didn't see happiness in his future. He had just enough in his life to keep him content. He had his car and his work and was on his way to rebuilding his relationship with his younger brother. He had convinced himself that those three things were all he needed. 

The violent buzzing of his phone awoke him, startled he sat up quickly, nearly falling face first on the floor in the process. Dean groaned and brought his hands to rub his eyes in an attempt to fully wake himself up. He looked around for his phone, trying to follow the incessant vibrations. Finally his emerald eyes landed on the device, which had fallen on the floor. The caller ID flashed the name "Sammy" across the screen twice more before going to voicemail. Just as he leaned to retrieve the device the chair leaned too far forward and he went tumbling to the floor.

"Son of a bitch!" Dean cursed into the air. The fall hadn't caused pain but it was damn inconvenient. He snatched up the phone and checked to time. The time '8:08pm' caught his attention, realizing he had slept longer than intended. He didn't bother to listen to Sam's voicemail, assuming he had even left one in the first place. If there had been one it would have been along the lines of  "be on time. And be nice." 

Finally pulling himself to his feet Dean shuffles to the bedroom and plugged his phone into the charger. Deciding he had enough time he grabbed a quick shower and changed into a red flannel shirt and a pair of jeans. He wasn't dressing up by any means but he wanted to look decent. 

Heading into the bedroom he grabbed his phone off the charger. By the time he got to his car and checked the time again it was already 8:43pm. Starting the engine, his baby roared to life. He sped off down the road on his way to The Roadhouse to meet the mysterious Castiel.


	3. Chapter 3

Searching the slightly crowded bar, Dean realized Sam hadn't even given him a description of this supposed Castiel. He began to wonder if there even was a Castiel in the first place. 

"What kind of name is Castiel anyway?" Dean grumbled to himself, giving up rather quickly. He spotted Jo, who gave him a kind smile and began to walk over to the blonde waitress. That was until a gruff voice caught his attention.

"Are you Dean Winchester?" Dean turned and spotted the source of the voice. A dark haired man seated at one of the tables against the wall. 

"Uh, yeah." Dean looked over his shoulder and saw that Jo's smile had turned into a disappointed frown. He shot her a quick smirk, which seemed to brighten her mood as she carried on with serving the customers. Taking slow, heavy steps toward the table he started to unintentionally size up Castiel. Sam has said he was a college student, but he looked a little older, closer to Dean's age. He had the slightest amount of scruff and piercing blue eyes. Along with that was an awkward smile he kept on his face as he watched Dean walk over.  
Pulling the chair back, Dean sat down cautiously. The Roadhouse didn't have the best furniture and he didn't want have a repeat of what Jo called "the chair incident". Fun for her, not for Dean. 

"I'm Castiel." The man across from him offered with a small smile. "My friends call me Cas." Dean simple nodded. "You are Dean Winchester right?"

"No, I'm an imposter." Dean chuckled to himself but once he saw Cas's eyebrows knit together he rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I'm Dean. Why else would I have come over?"

"Sorry I- I wasn't sure if you were coming or not. Sam said you'd be late, but I was beginning to worry you wouldn't show up." Castiel's large fingers began to nervously fiddle with the discarded paper from a straw. That's when Dean noticed there was a water sitting in front of Castiel. What kind of guy orders water at a bar?

"Well, here I am. So, you're a college kid huh?" Dean recalled the small amount of information Sam had relayed. 

"Yeah, well, sorta I guess. I dropped out of high school, so I'm behind." Dean couldn't help but notice the way Cas's shoulders dropped at that statement. Almost like he was embarrassed, but Dean didn't see a reason he should be. "But," Castiel paused to sip at his drink. "Thanks to technology I was able to finish high school and start college online. It's a lot better."

Dean had looked into online school at one point but decided against it. He didn't have time for that sort of thing. "So, why'd you drop out?" 

Castiel's eyes shifted like the topic made him uncomfortable but he answered anyway. "I grew up going to catholic school and once I was old enough I realized that I absolutely hated it. So I left." Cas shrugged and took a another sip of his water. 

"Catholic school, huh? Your family a bunch of bible thumpers?" Dean wasn't sure why but he was starting to get interested in this guy. He assumed it was just because he hadn't talked to anyone new in a while.

Cas let out a small chuckle to himself. "You could say that, yeah. They uh, well, we were raised on the 'word of the lord'." With the last four words Castiel used air quotes, which made Dean smirk. "I still believe in god and stuff but they were sort of extreme. They literally named my brothers and I after angels." 

"Angels, huh?" Dean asked as he waved Jo over since he was starting to get hungry.

"Yeah, my older brothers Michael and Gabriel, names after the archangels. My younger sister Anna after some angel I can't pronounce. And my name, Castiel, came from the angel Cassiel. But my parents didn't like that name for a boy so they tweaked it." Castiel explained. "At least their names sound normal. Castiel on the other hand, not so common."

"Well I can say that you're the first Castiel I've ever met." Dean said while pointing a finger at Cas. 

A small smik crosses Castiel's lips. "Well I'm happy I get to be your first." A laugh broke out from both men at Castiel's comment.

"Wow. Wasn't expecting that. But anyway, your parents seem interesting." At laugh Castiel let out another chuckle. Dean couldn't help how his smile became a large grin. He liked making people laugh. 

"That's one word for it. But, I've been talking about me too much. Tell me about you. Sam told my brother you were looking for a roommate?" Castiel stirred his drink with his straw as he gave Dean a curious look.

"Well, yeah." Dean tensed at the topic. He had been moving on but the topic brought back sore memories of his ex. But, he couldn't blame Castiel. After all it was the reason they were even meeting in the first place. "My girlfriend convinced me to move out here with her, and like an idiot I agreed. Few weeks later she moved out with half my stuff but left me with the rent." 

"I'm sorry." Castiel looked uncomfortable, like he didn't know what to say. Poor guy probably wasn't prepared for the change to the cumbersome topic. 

Dean was about to tell him it was fine but Jo walked over, stealing his attention. "Hey, Dean. Who's your friend?" The cheery blonde asked.

"Oh, that's Castiel." Dean gestured to Castiel, introducing him to his friend. "We just met actually."

"Oh, well hi Castiel, I'm Jo." Jo gave him her signature sweet smile and held out her hand. Castiel gave an awkward smile before reaching over to shake her hand. Dean watched the interaction, trying not to laugh at how Cas looked like he was struggling to be friendly. He was a full grown man who had turned back into a nervous middle schooler around a girl. 

Dean started to notice the way Jo was smiling at Cas, and how she hadn't let go of his hand. He had seen that look many times before. He also couldn't help but notice how Castiel's hand was significantly larger, so if he really wanted to pull away it would have been easy, but he almost looked to scared to. Finally, Dean couldn't take the awkwardness of the interaction anymore.

"Hey, sweetheart, can we get two cheeseburgers and a beer?" Dean asked Jo, who finally left Castiel's hand go. When she turned her attention to Dean, he gave Castiel a quick glance, noticing the relieved expression.

"Sure thing, Dean." Jo smiled before placing her hand on Castiel's shoulder. Both men instantly tensed. Castiel, out of the sudden contact and Dean for- for some reason he couldn't place. Probably second hand embarrassment from Cas. "Want me to refill that water for you, hon?"

"I still have some left, but thank you." Castiel smiled kindly as Jo patted his shoulder and waltzed back to the kitchen. 

"I think you she likes you, buddy." Dean smirked at the blush that creeped up Cas's cheeks. 

"She's- she's not my type." Cas shook his head and sipped at his water.

"Seriously?" Dean question and Cas nodded. He was used of seeing guys throw themselves at her, hell, if he didn't see her as a little sister he may have considered it himself. She was young and pretty with bouncy blonde hair and an innocent look in her eyes, around the same age as Cas too. "Then what is your type?" 

"Why are you so curious?" Cas questioned in return rather than answering.

Dean shrugged. "Well, if we're gonna be living together, it'd make it easier to know who to set you up with."

"That won't be necessary." Cas shook his head and started messing with the straw paper once again. "You said 'if we're going to live together'. Does that mean you accept my offer?" Castiel looked up from the straw paper.

Dean bit his lip and silently cursed to himself. He had already decided he was going to let Cas be his roommate, but he wanted the drag him along for a bit. Maybe get a free meal out of it. "Yeah, man." Dean nodded. "You seem like an okay guy. I mean, you're not a serial killer are you?"

Castiel once again looked confused. Dean noted that this guy probably didn't get sarcasm very well. "I'm not a murderer, no." 

Dean nodded. "Well then, congratulations you just found yourself an apartment. But, you have money right?" 

Castiel cleared his throat. "No, I was under the impression you'd be letting me live there for free." Dean's face dropped. "That was a joke."

The small grin on Castiel's face somehow made Dean smirk. Dude seemed proud of himself, might as well let him have it. Before Dean could think of something, preferably a snarky comment, Jo returned with a tray containing two burgers and a basket of fries. And in the other was the beer.

"Here you go boys." Jo sat the tray onto the table and placed the beer in front of Dean. "The fries are complimentary."

They both thanked her and then she went back behind the bar. Dean pulled the tray closer to him, trying to figure out which of the two plates had the bigger burger. He decided that the left one was, so he snatched it before Cas could react. But Castiel didn't seem to care, but he did pull the fries of the tray and sat them in the middle of the table. Dean took a large bite out of burger he let out a groan, which earned him a strange look from the man across the table.

"They make the best burgers here." Dean spoke with a mouth full. He probably didn't speak as clearly as he thought he had, but Cas nodded anyway. Cas was clearly a polite guy, he could see that after little time spent with him. It would be nice to have a person with mild respect around. Cas eyed Dean then his burger before taking a bite himself.

Cas chewed and hummed. "This is quite delicious." Cas agreed with another bite. They ate in silence for a few moments, both too hungry to make conversation. Just as Dean finished chewing his last bite of burger, he reached for the untouched fries. Castiel apparently had the same idea as Dean felt a brush of warmth against his fingers. His eyes shot to the source and saw that Castiel's fingers were infact next to his. The contact caused Dean to yank his hand back, spilling the fries across the table. Castiel jolted backwards, most likely out of shock.

"What the hell was that?" Dean demanded sternly, while Castiel just looked back with furrowed brows and a small frown. Dean cleared his throat, confused with himself. "I- never mind."

"Is everything okay?" Cas sounded concerned, but not as concerned as Dean was. What the hell was that? Why has he done that? He looked around and saw a few patrons staring due to his outburst. "Dean?" Castiel's voice brought his attention back. 

"Yeah, I- sorry I uh thought I saw a...spider." Dean muttered out an excuse. He dropped his eyes to his beer, he grabbed it and chugged the rest. He could feel Castiel's curious eyes on him. 

"You saw a spider?" Castiel questioned. He definitely didn't believe the phoney excuse, hell he wouldn't have even believed himself. "I guess I'll go get fresh ones." Castiel eyed Dean one last time before standing up and going to the bar, where Jo quickly walked over to him before the other waitress could. Jo probably had a crush, but he wasn't surprised. When they had met, Jo had a crush on him too. It wasn't a big deal. It's not like they'd get together, Cas said she wasn't his type. Before he could continue with his thoughts he stopped himself and only one was left; why did he even care?


	4. Chapter 4

After finishing their meal at the bar Castiel decided it would be better if he saw the place before he moved in. Now, 2 days later Dean was cleaning up the kitchen, anxiously awaiting Cas's arrival. They hadn't communicated much since the bar, other than Dean texting him the address. All Cas had replied with was an "Ok" so he had no idea when Castiel was coming. Dean wasn't a fan of cleaning by any means, but he was desperate. He was still behind on rent and within the next 2 months could be evicted, so he really needed Castiel to agree to move in. And if that meant clearing out all the leftovers from the fridge and wiping down counters, then that was fine. The second bedroom, if everything went well, Cas's room, was the last thing that needed to be cleaned. It was empty, but Dean wanted to vacuum the carpet floor just incase. Over the vrooming of the vacuum Dean almost didn't here his phone go off.

Castiel  
I'm 2 minutes away.

Well, that wasn't much of a warning. Dean finished up the last patch of carpet as fast as possible, nearly tripping over the cord. He rushed to shut off the machine and wheeled it into the small hall closet. He quickly inspected each room, making sure everything was approvable for a visitor. Just as he let out a sigh of relief that everything was in order, there was a knock on the door. Running into the bathroom he quickly looked himself over, running his hands through his hair, rubbing his eyes. A second knock caught his attention as he was straightening his shirt. 

"I'm comin'!" Dean called out as he headed for the door. He cracked his knuckles before unlocking and opening the door. On the other side was Castiel, as expected. He was dressed in black pants and a white button up shirt with a lopsided smile on his face. And in his hands he was holding a potted plant. "Is that a cactus?"

"Yes, yes it is." Castiel confirmed. Seeing Dean's confused expression, he explained further. "My sister told me it is a custom to bring a housewarming gift. I wasn't sure what she meant by that, so I looked it up. Google suggested a plant." He extended his arms, gesturing Dean to take the plant.

Dean nodded his head slowly. "Uh huh. Makes...sense. Um- thank you." He accepted the cactus with one hand, then stepped back and with the other hand gestured for Cas to enter. 

"Careful, the thrones are not pleasant at all " Cas warned as he looked around the living room, probably noticing Dean's embarrassing lack of furniture. But Cas turned back to Dean with a kind smile anyway. "This is a nice place you have, Dean."

He knew Castiel was just being polite, but Dean couldn't help the smile of his own that formed. "Thanks I guess. I'll give you the grand tour." Cas simply nodded and Dean patted his shoulder and started showing him around. "Well we're in the living room that's also the kitchen." Deam paused and went to set the housewarming cactus onto the counter. "And down here," Dean pointed Cas to the other side of the room. "This door is mine, the one next to it is yours, and across from these two are the bathroom. Here, I'll show you your future room." Dean grasped the door knob, but paused a moment before opening it. "It's kind of close quarters, but the room is still pretty big. Well, not big but pretty average." The apartment was normal sized, it suited him fine, but he wasn't sure how Cas would like it. Dean sighed then opened the door to reveal the square shaped room. Castiel stepped in with a little smile and Dean simply crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe. "I know it's a little small, b-"

"It's great." Castiel cut him off. "Dean, you don't have to worry." Dean opened his mouth to speak again, but Cas cleared his throat and walked to the opposite side of the room. "Sam told me about the rent issue, but you really don't have to worry. Truthfully, when we met I already decided I wanted to be your roommate. But, of course that decision is still up to you." He ran his finger tips along the far wall before turning back around to look at Dean. "Plus, I'm pretty sure this is bigger than my childhood bedroom I shared with my brothers." A chuckle left his lips at his own comment.

"Well, okay then." Dean said with a bit of a smile, feeling more confident. "I'll show you the bathroom." He turned and took a few steps before reaching the bathroom door. "There's two towel racks, if you're lucky maybe I'll let you have your own." Dean teased with a smirk as he opened the door and stepped out of the way.

"I guess I'll have to get on your good side." Cas gave Dean a wink before walking past him into the bathroom. Dean's face flushed slightly, surprised by Cas's reaction. Castiel seemed like a shy guy, which meant it would be fun to mess with him. Not in a mean way, Dean was the furthest thing from a bully, but in a teasing way. Maybe just embarrass the guy. But now Dean was the embarrassed one. He assumed it was from the slight shock due to Castiel's reaction. He was used of getting flirty reactions from his teasing but they were always from women. But when he did it to guys, it usually shut them down pretty quick. But it was becoming apparent that Castiel wasn't like most guys. Infact, Castiel wasn't like anyone he had met before. "I don't think I've ever seen a bathroom that organized. My siblings...weren't the tidiest people."

Thankfully Dean had recovered from the comment. "I used the be kind of a slob, but when I started living on my own I realized it was much easier to keep things in order." Cas nodded at that. "So, that's the grand tour." Dean led Cas back out to the living room and held his arms out. 

"Don't I get to see your room?" Cas asked suddenly, looking at him right in the eye.

"What, why?" Dean questioned.

Cas simply shrugged, the tiniest hint of a smirk on his lips. "Just want to make sure you're not a serial killer." Dean furrowed his brows before he realized Cas was referring to when Dean had asked him the same thing.

"I mean, sure it's nothing special. I've sort of been sleeping on an air mattress and a pile of pillows and blankets." He showed Cas his room briefly, then went to usher him out but Cas had stopped.

"That's a beautiful quilt. Where did you get it?" Castiel asked, looking down at the mattress that was covered in a heap of pillows and blankets, with the quilt on top.

"Actually, my mom made it for me when I was younger. It's kind of small and tattered but it makes me...I don't know...feel safe." Dean said sadly, remembering the moment when his mom had given it to a younger him. "Sorry, that's really lame."

"Actually, I think it's quite endearing." Castiel gave him a kind smile. "Your mom seems kind." 

"Yeah, she was." Dean cleared his throat, fighting the emotional down turn the conversation had caused in him. He knew Castiel wasn't intentionally trying to upset him, he was just simply trying to make conversation. 

Castiel caught onto the sad look in Dean's eyes and changed the conversation topic. "So when do you think I can possibly move my stuff in?" He walked out to the living room and Dean followed.

Dean was grateful Cas hadn't pushed him. "As soon as you want man. Like I told Sammy to tell your brother, who hopefully told you, rent is a total $2,500 a month." Cas nodded, signalling him to continue. "So I think splitting it 50-50 is fair." Once again Cas nodded in agreement. "So that's $1250 each."

"That sounds perfectly fair. I sort of told my current landlord that I had found another place." Castiel cleared his throat. "So would it be alright if I moved in by tomorrow?"

"Like I said, as soon as you want." Dean was eager to just get everything sorted out, so in his mind the sooner Cas moved in, the smoother everything would go. 

"I don't have a lot of furniture, but would it be alright if I bring over what I have? It's just stuff for my room like my bed and dresser, but I do have a coffee table I believe would go well out here." Cas explained.

"Sounds great man. It's been sort of empty here." Dean sighed, looking around the living room.  
"I actually have tomorrow off work so I can help you move everything in. You know, so you don't have to call movers or anything." Cas smiled at Dean's offer. "We're on the third floor, shouldn't be too hard."

"Okay, well I guess I'll go start packing." Castiel pointed to the door with his thumb. "It was nice seeing you again, Dean." 

Dean chuckled at that as he went to open the door for Castiel to exit. "Well, we will be living together, so get used of seeing me everyday." 

Castiel smiled a bit at that and looked down, before looking back up at Dean. "Looking forward to it." Then just like that he left and headed down the hallway. Dean peaked his head out and watched as the dark haired man who continued to baffle him disappeared down the stairwell.


	5. Chapter 5

California was always hot, but today was one of the worst. Unfortunately, Dean seemed to have the worst luck, so of course today was the day they decided to move Castiel's furniture into the apartment. But, Castiel said it wasn't that much, so Dean decided they could just get it over with. After getting Castiel's text that he had arrived, Dean headed down stairs dressed in a black Metallica t-shirt and a pair of basketball shorts he slept in occasionally. He slowly walked down the last flight of stairs that led to the parking lot, dreading the heat. Finally at the glass doors that led to the parking lot, he saw Castiel standing outside next to a beige Ford pickup truck. It looked like an older car, which Dean could appreciate. There wasn't that much in the truck bed, the only large things being a bedframe, mattress, coffee table, and a bookshelf. Dean guessed everything would take at least an hour or two. Sighing when Castiel spotted him, he headed outside into the blazing heat. 

"Hello, Dean." Castiel greeted once he was close enough. Castiel was dressed vastly different from the last two times Dean had seen him. Rather than his old formal attire, he was in a plain grey t-shirt and basketball shorts, similar to Dean's. 

"Hey, Castiel. So, let's get this show on the road before we melt." Dean didn't bother with small talk as he moved to begin unloading the truck. 

"I was thinking we could move the larger things first before it gets too hot." Castiel suggested, and Dean nodded. He was sweating already, realizing he let Cas stay out in the heat he started to feel bad.

"Yeah, man. Whatever you think will be the fastest." Dean said with a grunt as he started to pull the bedframe off the back of the truck. "You gonna help?" Dean questioned when he saw Castiel was just watching.

"Right, sorry." Castiel rushed over to help Dean lifetup the bed frame. "You go backwards, I'll go forward." 

"Sounds good." Dean replied quickly as he started to move. Carrying the bed frame wasn't as had as they had anticipated. The mattress was probably the most difficult thing, but after a longer attempt they managed. Dean was starting to get exhausted after moving all of the stuff into Castiel's bedroom. The only things left in the truck were boxes of clothing and personal items and the coffee table Cas had said would look nice in the living room. After a while Dean and Cas managed to carry all of the large things into Castiel's new room. After a moment's break they moved on to carrying up the individual boxes.

"I think I'm going to pass out." Cas groaned as he carried a box of books up the stairs, Dean behind him with another box that contained knicknacks. "This is torturous." 

"How much shit do you have, dude?" Dean questioned as they reached the top of the stairs. He was exhausted not only from carrying the boxes, but also the heat. California was normally hot, but then again he wasn't usually carrying boxes up flights of stairs. "Ok, you know what? I think we owe ourselves a longer break."

"Agreed." Cas sighed as he entered the apartment and set the box onto the floor. Castiel pressed his back against the wall and slid down, taking a seat on the living room floor with a huff. Dean walked by him and went to the fridge, retrieving two beers. "No thank you, I don't drink." Rather than questioning, he exchanged the beer for a water and handed it over to Cas. After that Dean popped the cap off his beer and dropped to the floor, leaning against the end of the kitchen counter which caused him to face Castiel.

The second the bottle reached Cas's hand he twisted off the lid with ease and dropped it to the floor. Bringing the water bottle to his lips Castiel quickly drained the cooling liquid. It didn't even seem like he was breathing as Dean watched a small droplet of water fall from the side of Castiel's mouth. It was like Dean was in a trance and couldn't make himself pull his eyes away from Cas's plump, pink lips that were wrapped around the top of the bottle. Heat rose to Dean's cheeks when he realized he was staring. But he noticed a little too late when realized Castiel's eyes met his, he lowered the nearly empty water bottle from his lips.

"Sorry." Cas apologized, panting slightly. Dean wasn't sure why Castiel was the one apologizing when he was the one staring. Before his mother died she had taught him that it was rude to stare at others. He didn't really get why, but he later learned it was a universally frowned upon so he followed the rule. But he couldn't take his eyes off Cas. Not even after he had caught him. 

Dean couldn't think of anything to say so he simply cleared his throat and started on his beer, but he felt Castiel's eyes on him. He certainly wasn't being subtle, which made Dean realize he probably hadn't been either. That caused Dean to pull himself to his feet and head out the door, leaving behind his beer and a very confused Cas. Raking a hand through his hair he hurried down the steps, questioning what the hell was wrong with him. Why had he been so focused on Cas? Especially his lips? Shaking the thought away, he did his best to ignore everything that was running through his head. Instead he focused on putting one foot in front of the other as he carried himself down the stairs.

His name being called echoed through the stairwell and caught his attention and caused him to speed up. He didn't stop until he got back outside to Castiel's truck. He grabbed a box off the back and turned to take it back in, only to see Castiel blocking his way. "Dean, are you ok?" Castiel's deep voice asked, laced with confusion and concern.

"I just want to get this done before we catch fire or somethin'." Dean grumbled out as he pushed past Cas with a box titled 'books'. Damn that guy read a lot, that must have been the third or fourth box of books they had unpacked. Castiel didn't bother to question Dean and instead grabbed another box and followed him up the stairs.

They finished getting everything out of the truck and upstairs about 20 minutes later, finally getting out of the heat for the day. Everything had been moved into Castiel's room, but nothing had been unpacked yet. Castiel spent the rest of his day with the door shut setting up his room while Dean spent his drinking and watching television. For a quick dinner he made grilled cheese and brought Castiel one. After eating he grabbed another beer and settled in the recliner and watched some tv until dusk. All the good daytime shows had ended so nothing good was on. After channel surfing for what felt like eternity, he decided on watching one of the 'featured movies' which happened to be 'Iron Man 2'. He never told anyone, but he was a bit of a comic book nerd as a kid. When the Marvel movies started coming out he was always first in line at the theaters. He knew it was lame, an adult man going to the movies by himself, but he didn't care too much. By his fifth beer he ended up falling asleep during a commercial that played during the movie. He hated commercials, but it came with him being too stubborn to trade cable tv for Netflix or Hulu. He knew when he woke up, Dean would instantly regret falling asleep in the chair. He had done it many times before, but he always woke up sore and cold. He needed to get a tv for his room, or at least to remember to drag a blanket out with him next time. 

Dean awoke halfway from his slumber in the middle of the night to the sound of a car alarm. Looking around he realized it was coming from the tv, another one of those car crash commercials about texting and driving. He reached for the remote and turned the tv down before snuggling back into the chair and pulled his blanket tighter around him. Dean's eyes shot open. "What the hell?" Dean questioned out loud as he examined that a blanket had been thrown over him. But it wasn't any blanket, it was his special quilt. Sitting up fully he realized his shoes had been taken off, and on the new coffee table Castiel had brought, his empty beer bottles had been replaced by a glass of water. Cas had obviously been the one to do all that, but Dean couldn't help wonder why. He knew Cas was a nice guy, but he seemed to have gone out of his way. Castiel could have easily stayed in his room, but instead he made sure Dean would be comfortable in his sleep. Rather than allowing his brain to continue to run a mile a minute, Dean shifted around in the chair until he was comfortable again, and drifted back to sleep with one thing, well, one person on his mind.


End file.
